Central Highlands Regional Council v Geju Pty Ltd

Central Highlands Regional Council, an appellant, appealed against a decision of the Queensland Supreme Court which found it liable for damages to Geju Pty Ltd, the respondent. The respondent had purchased a lot of land from the Mayfair Group, who had previously applied for and received a material change of use from Rural to Industrial. The approval was set to lapse in four years. The Council issued a limited planning and development certificate which incorrectly noted the lot as zoned industrial. The respondent relied on this information when purchasing the lot, resulting in a significant financial loss when it was discovered that the lot was actually zoned rural. The respondent argued that the Council owed it a duty of care.

The legal issue before the court was whether the Council owed the respondent a duty of care in relation to the incorrect information provided in the limited planning and development certificate. The respondent argued that the Council knew or ought to have known that the information would be relied upon by the respondent when purchasing the lot. The Council argued that a duty of care did not arise as it was not reasonable for the respondent to act on the information without further inquiry. The court considered the relevant authorities and determined that the question of whether the Council owed the respondent a duty of care was not novel and had been answered in the respondent's favour by previous High Court decisions.

The court found that the respondent could have extricated itself from the contract if it had been informed of the correct zoning. The court rejected the Council's argument that the relevant authorities did not support the trial judge's conclusions. The court found that the Council owed the respondent a duty of care in relation to the incorrect information provided in the limited planning and development certificate. The appeal was allowed, and the orders made in the Queensland Supreme Court were set aside. The parties were to make submissions about the costs of the proceedings in the trial division and on appeal in accordance with the Practice Direction.